Michael Chandler has set some lofty goals for his near future.
Chandler will be returning after a hiatus of almost two years in a rematch against Charles Oliveira in a five-round, co-headliner at UFC 309 on Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Despite having gone 2-3 in his UFC career, “Iron” hasn’t lost championship aspirations yet.
Chandler believes he will be title talks with a potential win over Oliveira, a former lightweight champion. Meanwhile, No. 1 contender Arman Tsarukyan is expected to challenge Islam Makhachev for the title next year, potentially at UFC 311 in January. Chandler envisions himself facing the winner of that fight if he can get past “do Bronx.” The 38-year-old veteran believes he will become the oldest lightweight champ in UFC history by next year.
“I’d like to say Chandler 1.0 was out for blood, Chandler 2.0 is out for the title,” he recently told Shakiel Mahjouri. “I made a lot of changes, and I believe I’m champion in 2025. This will be a No.1 contender fight. I will be the highest ranked guy not named Arman Tsarukyan or Islam Makhachev, who are fighting at some point in 2025, probably January. So therefore, I will be knocking at that door. I will be cageside watching that fight. And at some point we’ll fight in 2025, and I will hold that belt over my head as the oldest lightweight champion in history.”
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The oldest lightweight champ in UFC history so far is Sean Sherk, who was 33 years and 336 days old when he won the title at UFC 73 in 2007.
Meanwhile, Chandler has lost out on the last two years primarily awaiting a big payday matchup against Conor McGregor, who hasn’t fought since breaking his leg against Dustin Poirier in July 2021. McGregor starred opposite Chandler as rival coaches on “The Ultimate Fighter 31” last year, but his return to the Octagon was repeatedly delayed. The two were finally scheduled to meet at UFC 303 this past June before “Notorious” pulled out due to a toe injury.
Meanwhile, Chandler has dropped three of his last four, which includes a technical knockout loss to Oliveira in May 2021. While Chandler hasn’t completely given up on the McGregor matchup, he is seemingly more focused on the title now.
